


Coronation

by AHeartForStories



Series: AHeartForStories' Whumptober 2020 [9]
Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Blood, Dragon Hybrids, Gen, Mental Link, Psychological Trauma, Shock, Trauma, Whump, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:53:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26920207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AHeartForStories/pseuds/AHeartForStories
Summary: Written for Whumptober Day 9. Takes place somewhere after Httyd 1. Now fully recovered and the Outcasts and Berserkers taken care off, the dragons think it's time for Hiccup to claim his rightful place.
Relationships: Astrid Hofferson & Stormfly, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III & Astrid Hofferson, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III & Toothless
Series: AHeartForStories' Whumptober 2020 [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949440
Comments: 12
Kudos: 64





	Coronation

**Author's Note:**

> At first I wanted to write something for the prompt "Ritual Sacrifice", but since the prompts are only suggestions and we are allowed full creative freedom, I decided to drop the "sacrifice" part of the prompt.  
> Not too certain about this one, I'm a little nervous it's too confusing. But I decided to go with it anyway.
> 
> Constructive criticism is appreciated!  
> Enjoy!

It is after a whole week of searching that Astrid finally comes upon Hiccup and Toothless, who had both been missing ever since dinner seven days earlier.

She finds them sitting in the cove, a place that had already been thoroughly checked once by her and the other Dragon Riders and then again and again by Chief Stoick. Because as Hiccup's father, he is understandably worried about his son and his dragon.

Barely having slept or eaten this past week, the man searched all over Berk and in the surrounding ocean, having only a longship and a rescue party to rely on. With Thornado having moved on to begin a new chapter in his life for the sake of three orphaned Thunderdrum hatchlings, Stoick has little choice.

Gobber, too, had been out of his mind with worry. Though knowing that Hiccup is a clever lad and Toothless would never allow harm to befall him, he still fretted for hours into the night. He has accompanied his friend on every search.

And after all their trouble, after all the worrying all of them have done, the entirety of Berk has done, Hiccup and Toothless are both just there in the cove, sitting by the lake and in no apparent hurry to go home.

"Hiccup! Toothless!" Astrid sternly calls their names as Stormfly touches down. There is a twinge of anger igniting a fire in her chest. Okay, maybe it's more than a simple twinge. They've been gone for days!

The Nadder chirps their way as Toothless looks over to watch them land.

They both appear to be unharmed from what she can see and that's all the reassurance Astrid needs. They aren't harmed, so surely they can take an angry rant about what these two have put their village and loved ones through.

Hiccup may not believe it, but everyone has been in an uproar over their disappearance.

As she dismounts, Astrid quickly wipes at her eyes as she approaches, having been maddened by concern, herself. She is ready to begin her tirade and ask the two runaways what the deal was with them disappearing like that for so long, especially with their shaky peace with the Outcasts.

But then she notices something off about Hiccup and her rant is quickly forgotten.

He hasn't turned to her at all as she jumped out of the saddle and came stomping over. It is at least a little bit odd and it's enough to make her wonder if something is wrong. So her stomping slows into a cautious walk before she halts and observes the two.

Toothless is looking her way. He rumbles a greeting and looks rightfully guilty, having some idea of what the two of them must've put their loved ones through.

But Hiccup, he's not even taking a single glance. He's just sitting there with his knees drawn up to his chest and drawing in the dirt, or that is what it appears to her.

"Hiccup," This time she speaks his name in a more worried tone and she manages to run over.

The closer she gets, the more concerned she is.

It's in the middle of the night and maybe she's seeing things, but it's almost like he's covered in blood. His face and the front of his tunic seem to be. Is he hurt?

"Are you... okay?" Astrid comes to stand next to him and struggles to find the right words to use. Her concern is enough to choke her, but she knows better than to force herself into his personal space and be too overbearing. Even if it's to check up on him, Hiccup will not respond well to that.

But she kneels by him and that's when he finally looks up to her.

Astrid's next words, whatever they may have been, end up stuck in her throat when Hiccup's gaze throws her off.

There is something off about his eyes.

She can't quite explain what exactly. Is it the shape? The shape of his pupils seems slightly off. Or maybe she's imagining things. It's so late and she, like everyone else, has barely slept as of late. Her mind must be playing tricks on her.

But then there is also a certain glow to the green of his eyes, like they're reflecting the moonlight just like Toothless' do during the night. As a normally nocturnal dragon, his eyes are adapted to work at the darkest hours of the day, when his exceptional hearing and echoing calls aren't needed.

But Hiccup isn't a dragon, he's a human. And that means she's just seeing things. So she shakes her head to rid herself of these thoughts and focusses on what's more important right now.

"Hiccup, can you talk? Can you tell me if you're okay?" Astrid asks and dares to reach out a hand. First to touch his shoulder and then to run a hand through his blood-crusted bangs, hoping to detangle them and get rid of some of that crust. It's all dried, it's been there for a while.

Toothless watches, his gaze moving from Astrid to Hiccup and back.

Hiccup isn't as responsive. He, too, watches her hand, but ends up not answering her question. Instead, he simply goes back to what he's been doing, drawing in the dirt using a stick.

Astrid isn't mad, finding this to be quite a concerning thing as Hiccup, by nature, is someone who can't stay this quiet and still for this long.

Toothless coos and nudges his Rider's shoulder. It is ineffective as even he can't seem to get Hiccup to respond.

Adjusting slightly to sit in front of him, Toothless presses their foreheads together and Hiccup backs up with a shock, holding his head as if it hurts.

"Hiccup, are you hurt?! Your head, is that where the blood is coming from?" Astrid asks while Toothless lowers himself, crooning his apologies.

If all of this is coming from a head wound she can't see, then Astrid needs to find it and get him to Gothi. Or better yet, take him to Gothi and let her find it.

But then finally, he speaks.

"No, it's just... Too much information... I think?" His voice is quiet, but whatever Toothless just did, it startled him out of this stupor he was in. Like he woke him up from a trance.

"Hiccup,"

"There's too much... going on... in my head?... I don't know what to do with... all... this... Sounds, voices." Hiccup tells her, taking so many pauses as if he's struggling to form his words. What he's saying makes no sense to her, but she's certain it makes sense to him somehow either.

Hiccup leans against Toothless, head resting on his scales. He stares at the water and the reflection of the moon.

His eyes, she tries not to think of them, but they are even more evident with all that blood covering his face. His vest is quite stained and crusted beyond saving. With no injury brought up, it's almost like someone or something has just thrown blood on him. But she can't imagine the kind of situation that would require such a thing and where it may come from sickens her.

Forcing her nausea back down, Astrid wills a hand out and rubs his upper back. Whatever he's seen, whatever he's been through the past week, she can't even begin to imagine. Especially when it affects him, of all people, to this extent.

And yet, Toothless seems strangely unaffected, if a little bit careful with his human. Hiccup's current mental and physical state probably has something to do with it.

As she rubs his back in comfort, his face contorts, his eyes become watery, and his lip trembles. He wants to cry, but he doesn't.

"They all trust me, you know? And... and... and they'll all do exactly as I tell them to... Just like She did." His sentences come out easier, though they still make very little sense to her. And his voice is still too soft.

Astrid waits for him to continue. She can't know for sure without asking, but she has a feeling "She" may be the Red Death. She's at least sure that "they" are the dragons.

"They count on me and I need to deliver as their new... But I don't know... I don't know if I can." He states and she decides to make a guess.

"Who are they? Berk? The dragons?" She asks, knowing no one else who would expect such things from Hiccup besides their tribe.

"My head hurts." He simply says, once again not answering her question and Astrid still isn't mad at him for that. He doesn't even look like he can hear her. Is it because "his head is too full"? Whatever that means? Is it the "sounds" or "voices"?

She comes to kneel in front of him and places her hands on his arms. Toothless did it to get his attention, maybe she can get his this way, too.

"Hey, how about we take you home? Back to your dad? And your bed? Does that sound good?" She hopes she isn't making her sentences too complex, wanting him to understand her in this state he's in.

Gazing up at her with haunted eyes, he nods.

Rumbling, Toothless gets up when Hiccup sits up straight to let him. Astrid helps him to his feet. She smiles at him, hoping to alleviatehis spirits a little.

Hiccup tries to return it, but he can't. His heart is too heavy with what he's gone through.

She wants to know what it is, what weighs on him so much, but there is a part of her that doesn't want to know.

Toothless comes to stand next to Hiccup and he gets on, climbing in the saddle with Astrid's help. It's not that he necessarily needs it, it's just that she feels like she needs to help him. He seems almost frail, though Astrid knows he's far from that. He's walked off enough crashes from high altitudes and beaten too many foes to be called fragile in any way.

And yet...

His prosthetic can't find its stirrup. He's too confused.

"Wait, let me..." Astrid takes the initiative and helps the metal leg into it, with no complaint from Hiccup, though he's usually so set in his autonomy. Another strange thing, another reason to worry.

"Bud, can we go home? Oh, I mean..." Though his sentence ends that way, he doesn't continue. His face contorts again, brows furrow, like he's trying to think really hard or like his headache is growing worse. Or she thinks what he's suffering from is similar to a headache.

Still, Toothless rumbles, even though Hiccup hasn't said anything that warranted an answer.

Astrid watches them take off, playing with a sidebang, a habit she has when she's troubled.

"Come on, girl." She says eventually and climbs back into the saddle to follow the two home.

"Say, you don't know what's going on, do you?" She asks her dragon this question and this time it's Stormfly she's not receiving an answer from, although her Nadder usually makes sure to always respond to her in some shape or form.

So she does know something and Toothless clearly knows something, the dragons know something. This whole situation is getting stranger and stranger by the second and the lack of answers is killing her.

When the two of them reach the village, they find Hiccup already in the arms of his father, who is kneeling before him and trying to wipe his face clean of the dried blood.

She can hear his voice all the way up here, but though his voice is loud, he's not mad. He wants to know what has happened, where all of that blood has come from, if he's hurt or if anyone has hurt him, but he's not getting any responses either.

"Come on, inside you go. I'll have Gothi come by later." As Astrid and Stormfly land, Stoick decides to bring his son inside once he realizes the same thing. He believes him to be in shock and maybe that's what's going on here. A hand on his upper back, he guides him into their home and away from the growing crowd.

The other Dragon Riders are there as well and stare at Astrid as they figure she might've been the one to bring him back. But though they stare, with varying expressions of confusion, she can only shrug and shake her head. What can she say to them? She's just as confused as they are.

The next day there's just more of the same. Hiccup distancing himself from everyone but Toothless and even staying cooped-up inside his room, barely leaving his bed. They couldn't even get him to stay inside when he was recovering from his amputation. Hiccup is barely able to speak of his experiences and Toothless is simply unable to because he's a dragon and cannot speak the human tongue.

And Gothi, she can't quite figure out what's wrong as, physically, Hiccup is perfectly fine. So she says that she doesn't know what may be wrong, that everything is okay, and Astrid doesn't have any actual reason to be suspicious of her. Although, she has always been under the impression that Gothi always knows more than she's letting on. Just like the time she chose Hiccup over her as champion for dragon killing training, knowing how he was truly "defeating" the training dragons.

In the end, after days of silence, Hiccup suddenly goes back to the way he was before that week, like nothing's ever happened.

It's a startling change that happens overnight. He just comes down the stairs one morning, as cheery as can be, and talks to his father about some future projects of his.

It's good to see him back to his old self again, but Astrid isn't as relieved as she hoped she'd be. All it does is give her more questions than there are answers.

Maybe time will tell what happened during those seven days or maybe one day Hiccup will confide in her. Until then, she's just going to have to live with not knowing.

* * *

On the evening he disappears, Hiccup thinks Toothless has been acting a little strange as of late. As a matter of fact, all the dragons have been acting strangely.

He can't quite put his finger on why he thinks so, there's just something off about the way they behave around him. It's like they're excited about something and they want to tell him all about it, but can't.

So when Toothless pulls him outside of the house one evening shortly after dinner for a flight and it becomes clear that a regular flight around Berk isn't what he's looking for, Hiccup let's him take him to wherever he wants him to be.

Dragon Island is where he takes him and along the way, other dragons of Berk join them on their flight. It's reminiscent of the time he, Toothless, and Astrid got caught in a raiding pack as they returned to the Red Death's nest, their former queen, except this time there is less hostility and fear.

Instead, there is the excitement that he's been seeing in the dragons grown tenfold. They are filled with glee and it's almost contagious as Hiccup feels himself getting a little worked up as well.

Whatever it is that the dragons want to show him, or what it is he thinks they want to show him, he can hardly wait.

He won't get it until it's already been done, but he has recovered from the loss of his leg. And Berk's biggest enemies at the time, the Outcasts and the Berserkers, they have been taken care of. Berk will face a period of stability now, a period of peace. The time for change is now.

It is the perfect time for a human to have his coronation as a dragon and become one of them.


End file.
